What I used to know
by Takaluca
Summary: 7 years after his parents divorce an living with his dad, Lincoln retuns to Royal Woods to help his father in his financial problems. However, the small town he once grew up in, is now a city, even his sisters and mother. And it's all thanks to a man, one with dark secrets. (Based off true experiences between the authors) (Co written with Cryandia)
1. Goodbye

**A/N (Cryandia): This fic is based off of personal experiences. Most is a work of fiction, but we added some things that we both experienced. These experiences happened with our fathers, they were traumatic experiences that managed to leave behind a lot of scars, both physically and mentally. Some are still recovering, which is my case. We've moved on and we're open about it now, this fic is evidence, yet, don't expect every detail to be told.**

 **A/N (Takaluca): Just like she said, we had to learn really young how to deal with certain feelings. And we try to bring some our experiences through the words we write in this page. If you think this is too depressing, believe us, it happens more than you think. Even if this is published in my account, I would say Cry worked just as hard or even harder than me, and for that I'm grateful that we work together in this.**

 **Though we hope you enjoy what we wrote. English isn't our first language, so there might be minor mistakes in grammar. Sorry for that. Anyways, we hope you enjoy.**

 _So, you want to hear my story?_

 _A story about my sisters, my father, my mother and I. We used to be a happy family. A big, happy family. We were close, sure, with the occasional argument here and there, but that never separated us, it only made us closer._  
 _We were all happy. Until my father lost his job, he was a chef at a restaurant, he had no other choice but to go back to his former IT job. He had to go on a lot of business trips, so he was often alone in another state._  
 _Which would lead to some...events._

 _I still remember the day he left, before we found out._

 _It was a cold afternoon in October, just a month after school started. I remember all of us gathering around the door to say goodbye to my father. It had only been three weeks since he came back from his last trip, but no one knew why he was leaving so soon._

"You're leaving so soon? But you just got back."

"Rita, I told you, it's a business problem and my boss says I have to go back. I'll be staying in a hotel tonight and I'll arrive there tomorrow. I'll be back by next Monday."

The sun was almost down, in that Tuesday evening. For most people, it was just another day to complain that it wasn't Friday already. For the Louds, however, things were quite out of ordinary, and that was coming from them. Lynn Sr wasn't wearing his usual clothes, instead, he had a dark suit with a white shirt, and a red tie. He was carrying a suitcase, probably full of clothes. He was standing on the porch just in front of the house main door, as his family was gathered in the front door.

"Do you really have to go, daddy?" Lola asked, hugging her father's leg. "We missed you so much last time."

"I know sweety, I missed you too." he said, hugging his daughter in return. Most of the other sisters joined the act of love. "But people need me, and I'll save them from all evil that threaten them" He said, raising his hand like a superhero which made some of his daughters giggle in return.

"Lynn, I'm glad you got your IT job back after Aloha Comrade shut down, but it looks like you're working a bit too much." Rita said, concerned.

It's true. After his new business didn't went according to his plan, he was lucky to find a job, so he could raise his family. More money was coming in, but that money had a cost. Lynn Sr had to travel quite often to some of the companies main bases. Most of them were concentrated in the state of Oklahoma, and that was his destination that day.

"Don't worry honey, it's only temporary. Besides, if I continue like this, I might even get a raise, and you all know what that means," Lynn asked, exited.

"Presents!" The Loud Siblings cheered. Lynn Sr. chuckled a bit at the excitement of his children.

"Okay, let's check the list," Lynn Sr. grabbed a piece of paper from his pocket, clicking the pen. Soon enough, each sibling began talking over each other, wanting their gift to be written down.

"Kids, one at a time!" Rita quiet down the excited children.

 _Gifts weren't common, which was understandable._

 _My dad wrote what everyone wanted. Unfortunately, his cab had already arrived so we all gave him a quick group hug before he went on his way. He waved at his from the cab and we waved back. We watched until the cab turned the corner and was out of our sight, everyone except me went inside._

 _Everything had went back together in less than a day, my mom did struggle handling us all, but she always managed. She was a strong woman and I can see where my sisters got their independence from now. I had never seen her cry._

 _Until that night._

* * *

 _Three Days Later_

The usual ruckus of the Loud residence was its usual loud, like the family's name suggested. No matter how much the neighbors complained, the house was still rumbling with noise. It was almost natural, if more then three of the siblings are together, you can assure you're going to be facing Loud noises. The thing is, it's already hard to keep control when both parents are present. Imagine of there is only one. Rita was struggling to keep the house standing, and even if Lori helped here, the work of a single mom was something she was glad she didn't had to face. She would do anything for their kids if needed, even if it meant working alone to raise them properly.

The only moment you might find some sort of peace is during nighttime. After all, it doesn't matter how much noise they could produce, because one hour or another they will have to go to sleep. But this would be one of the many nights the family will remember for a long time.

Lincoln, just like most of his neighbors, was excited for a moment of peace and quiet. He had everything set, his pile of comics, his exposed underwear, a small snack, a flashlight to see under the covers, and no one to bother him. By now, most lights in the house were off and, if the sound of Lynn's snoring was any indication, his sisters were all asleep.

He got under his covers and turned on his small source of brightness. The reading was entertaining for a few minutes, until he heard something odd. It wasn't Lynn's snoring, and neither any sound one could produce while sleeping. He heard a crying. It must be loud so he could hear it, but it's not like the house's walls were known for actually blocking any sound.

Whoever he was, it was definitely annoying him. He got up and put on his PJs to see what was happening. When he finished changing, he heard a knock on his door. When he opened, he saw two of his younger sisters, Lana and Lola,in their nighttime clothes. They seemed to be frightened about something.

"Lola? Lana? What happened," Lincoln asked, worried they might have been the source of the noise.

"We heard a ghost," they both claimed at the same time. "Can we stay here?" they asked.

Then, another cry echoed through the hallway, making both twins begin shaking, as they quickly went under Lincoln's covers. Apparently his sisters must've heard that crying as well, due to sound of doors opening. He turned around to see them slowly approaching his room.

"Okay, who's making that sound?" Lori asked, irritated by her sudden awakening.

"Is not a ghost." Lucy explained. "This type of sound can only be caused by disturbance in human emotions."

"We already don't understand Lisa, and you're going to speak just like her?" Lynn complained.

Another cry, louder than the other one, rang throughout the house, coming from downstairs. The twins got out from Lincoln's covers and slowly approached the group. They all faced each other, while the older sisters went ahead downstairs to check on the noise. When they stepped into the living room, they heard sobbing coming from...their parents' room. The younger half of the siblings made their way down, hearing the sobbing as well. They looked at each other with concern, Lori went over to their parents' room and grabbed the doorknob.

The moment she grabbed the handle, another cry, louder than ever. Yes, definitely the source of the noise was their parents room, but what they didn't know is why. Lori opened the door slowly. The kids saw their mother, alone, on her bed. She faced the door and saw all of her kids. She tried to regain her position, but she couldn't stop crying.

Quickly, all of the siblings went around their mother, with a mixture of emotions in their heads. Sadness, confusion, fatigue, concern and the need to help their mother were the main ones. The first thing they tried to calm her down, they hugged her, some went towards the kitchen and brought water for her and tissues.

"Mom, why are you crying?" Lincoln asked the question everyone was wondering.

 _Oh, if only my young mind knew what was coming..._

She tried, but Rita simply could not speak. The words were simply get stuck on her throat. She was choking with her own breathing. Her hands covered her face as she continued to sob, the collar of her shirt being soaked from all the crying.

 _My oldest sister, Lori, had dealt with emotional stuff before, and if one could not say why they were upset, some clues would explain it all. Yet, it was not what she, or we for that matter, expected. I still remember the look on her face when she saw that photo._

Lori, being the one mostly used to have to deal with siblings having emotional conflict, tried searching for clues around the room. If there was any sort of information lying around, it certainly would explain the whole situation quicker then their mother would be able to.

And that's when she spotted a small object on laying down on the floor, an object that had no business being there, because nobody would simply let it there. Lori abandoned the group, and nobody actually noticed when she crouched to grab the object. It was their mothers cell phone. Well, what was left of it, anyways. Most of the screen was cracked, and even bent a little bit. Lori knew something like this wasn't an accident. Someone actually tried to break the thing. She struggled to see, but she could make out a few shapes and familiar symbols. It was open on a facebook page. She could see the face of a woman, she was with another person, whose face had too many crack to be recognized. The lower area of the phone had less damage, and Lori could read the description on it.

 _ **"Spending the night with the man of my life. S2S2S2"**_

Lori didn't exactly understood what was wrong with that, except the fact that girl had no reason being in her mother's contacts. Lori knew all of her mother friends from all of her social media, which wasn't much. She scrolled upwards, maybe the page went down and hid something else. Her finger had trouble with the screen, but she managed to get it to go up, just enough to see something.

She could see the face of the man on the picture. In a second, everything made sense to her. She understood what happened, she realized what was going up, but even then, she was shocked, just like her mother. A weird feeling went through her body and mind, something she wasn't really used to deal with. She didn't know what to do. She dropped the phone on the ground, getting the attention of the siblings. Not that she noticed, since she was facing away from them and the feeling of betrayal was too strong on her.

 _Yeah, it was what you'd expect. Our father was by that woman's side._


	2. A crappy reality

_**A/N (takaluca): Hey guys. Yes, I finally updated a story, instead of launching a new one. Jokes aside, we hope that you enjoy this chapter. Compliments and positive criticism are both always appreciated. Without further ado, let's go.**_

 _You know, once an older fella taught me a valuable lesson when he heard my story. He told me once he was on a train, he wanted to poop, but when he reached the bathroom, he only farted. Back on his seat, he had a sudden need to fart, and ended shitting his pants. Before I called the police, he explained to me, if we can't trust our own ass, how can we trust others?_

 _Never knew his name, but that story, just like mine, had a load of shit going through it._

 _And this is the moment where shit begins. When we found out about our father. If only things had gone different… but they didn't. Let's go back to the story._

 _So, it didn't took long before we all ended up in a condition similar to our mother. But get this, some of us didn't understand what happened at first, we were sad because the others were sad. If only we could understand..._

After Lori saw the image, she turned her face towards her mom. If Lori got sad because of herself or her mother, or both, it's not certain. What I know was that, at the moment, they were sharing the same feelings.

" _Mom_ …" Lori said, facing her

Rita didn't answer. She would simply face her eldest daughter, but it was clear they had the same thing in mind. Lori hold Rita in her hands, they both dropped tears. The rest of them gave them space, and it was a matter of seconds until they all saw the picture.

Wanna talk about anger? That's with Luna and Lynn. Wanna talk about sadness? That's with Lori and Luan. Wanna talk about confusion? That's with the rest of them. Lisa maybe understood what was going on, but big release of emotions wasn't exactly her style. The thing is, Leni, Lincoln, Lana, Lola and Lucy were oblivious to what was happening, even after seeing the picture.

"Who's dad's new friend?" Leni asked. "And why she called him 'love of his life?' The younger ones were also with that question in mind, but they knew it would be better to ask later. Not that it matters after she said that. After all, an answer is an answer.

That night felt like endless. Those who didn't understand what was going on also began crying, like it was a disease. Like some said, you can get addicted to a certain kind of sadness. They felt their sibling and mother had been for hours, and those who didn't cried themselves to sleep, got more information. Apparently, that wasn't the only picture Lynn Sr. appeared with that girl. And according to her status, she was hanging on a hotel in California.

Rita got the name of the hotels few hours before. She called the number and called there while the kids were asleep.

" _Hello, this is California paradise beach resort, how may I help you?"_ The female receptionist asked as she picked up the phone.

"Hi, I'm calling for my husband, Lynn Loud Sr.?." Rita still had hope that maybe it was just a man really similar to Lynn, but if he was in the hotel, that was highly unlikely.

"Ah, yes, Mr. Loud. Just a second, we are transferring the call," The woman said, and Rita heard the phone ringing, until someone on the other side of the line answered it.

" _Hello, Lynn Sr. speaking."_

"Lynn, what the hell are you doing there?"

" _Rita, is that you? W-why are you calling, honey? I'm at work."_ The man stuttered nervously.

"Stop with the lies, Lynn," Rita almost shouted. "I already saw the pictures with your new girlfriend,"

" _W-what're you- Ohhh...R-Rita you have it all wrong, she's a co-worker, not my girlfriend-"_ Lynn was brutally interrupted

"Well, she really makes it look like it, Man of her life." Rita deadpanned while her husband fell silent on the other side from surprise.

" _O-okay. Look honey, I know you're very angry, I would be too if I saw something similar, but please, take your time, calm down, and all will be explained. If you want to wait until I come back._

"You don't have to." Rita said, angry and quietly.

" _What do you mean?"_

"You don't have to come back. Just stay there. You seem to be having so much fun."

" _Come on Rita, this is just ridiculous,"_

"Oh, so you betray me and go on vacation without me _or_ the kids, now you're saying _I'm_ the one being ridiculous?" Rita said loudly.

" _Look Rita, we won't get nowhere this way. Call me when you've calmed down, and then I'll explain everything to you,"_ Lynn Sr. said sternly. Before Rita could reply, he hung up the phone.

"There is nothing to-..." She began hearing a beeping from the other side. Lynn ended the call. She could feel her face get hotter as she gritted her teeth. "Son of a _BITCH!_ " she screamed. She threw her phone away, hitting the wall, breaking it into separate pieces.

 _And that's where it began. The pile of shit that later I would call life. One thing father was right, though, calming down is the best thing, cause in the next day, we could hear every curse that came from her own mouth. All directed to my father._

* * *

 _The Next Day_

Most of the Louds were in their mother's bed. Lincoln was one of the first to wake up. In his mind, maybe a good breakfast would make everyone happy, at least a bit, so he headed to the kitchen.

When he left the bedroom, he met Leni sitting on the couch, with her phone in her ear.

"Morning Leni," He greeted. "What are you doing?"

"I'm calling dad. I'm using this number he gave us, but, like, the hotel keeps saying there's no one with his name there. Why would he change names?"

 _Oh, Leni, I just wished we were all like you. Oblivious to the real world. Who knows, maybe if mom hadn't found out, we would be together until college became a factor. But that wasn't how it went, and we have to deal with it. Sorry Leni, father gave you the wrong number. And the wrong state as well._

"Maybe he misspelled one of the numbers," Lincoln said. He would suggest texting him, but he was currently without a cellphone, because a certain fight ruined the device.

"Yeah, guess, I'll just wait then." Leni put away her phone, looked at him and then asked. "Hey Linky, you understood what happened last night?"

Out of all of the younger siblings, Lincoln was probably the second or third most aware of his surroundings. Lisa definitely knew better, an Lucy might have seen something similar in one of her shows or novels.

"I-I don't know, Leni, I was wondering that to." Lincoln half lied. While he had an idea of what was happening, he wasn't quite sure. His dad always told him that women would overreact all the time, and he wasn't totally wrong. Of course, that's a huge generalization, there are man that overreact, and girls that don't, but some situations he had faced revealed there was a bit of truth in his father's words. "I was going to make some breakfast for the rest of us,wanna help?"

"Oh, totes. I mean, like, I'm not very good, but…"

"Hey, don't worry, I help you if you need it," Lincoln reassured her and Leni smiled.

 _Always be nice to the ladies, he said. That way, they won't be mad at you, he said. Back then, I used to think he was telling me that so girls would like me, but now, I understand what he truly meant._

 _He would always tell me to be nice to my sisters, even if I was mad at them or them at me, I would do whatever I could do to make them happy and soon enough, they forgave me. Which is why I took his words into account, the clear evidence that if you act nice to someone, they'll eventually forgive you, but it's obvious that wouldn't work with my mother anymore._

Lincoln and Leni placed the plates of hot pancakes with syrup and blueberries on the table and a glass of orange juice (coffee for their older sisters and mother) on the table, just in time their mother and sisters got out of their rooms. The younger ones, once they caught a whiff of the smell of pancakes, they immediately sat down and basically dug in. The older ones sat soon after, then his mom, then him and Leni.

Despite the fact that almost everyone was there, the meal was relatively quiet with only the sound being the clanking of the utensils. Everyone was eating their meal silently, not making eye contact with anyone and continuing to stare down at their food. It was obvious that nobody had gotten enough sleep last night, due to what they saw and heard. Bags under their eyes, bed hair, it was all evident, all but Leni, who's hair was neater than everyone else's, however, she still had bags under eyes; they all had puffy eyes, obviously due from the crying last night. But it was nothing in comparison to Rita, she was an absolute mess. Her eyes were red and puffy along with dark circles and heavy bags, her hair was messy and tangled, her clothes were wrinkled and there were even some stains on them. It was evident that she hadn't slept at all.

 _At a first glance, silence seemed to be the best option. I mean, who would want another "try to flood the house" challenge. But as so many people say, there a limit of how much you can bottle up before it blows up. Our bottle was really small, or made of some crappy glass, because it didn't took long until someone broke the silence. And you guessed it, the most clueless of our bunch was that someone._

"So, like, why was everyone so upset last night?"

All eyes fell upon Leni. Luna and Lynn stared at her in disbelief while Lori and Luan could only sigh, they should've guessed that Leni wouldn't understand how serious the situation really was.

"What you mean 'why'?" Lynn asked, irritated. "Didn't you see what happened?!"

"Yeah, but that girl was just a friend to him, right?" Leni questioned, oblivious to Lynn's anger. The table stayed silent as the argument continued, some tears started welling in the kids' eyes and a sense of betrayal over fell over them. Rita continued to stay silent, though small teardrops fell on the table.

"Leni," Lori spoke up. "Everyone was upset because Dad…" The words got caught in her throat as she struggled to get them out while holding back her tears. The twins, Lucy and Lincoln were also after the answers of that question, but unlike Leni, they actually thought it would be best to wait and ask someone in private. Someone that was definitely not Lynn. She narrowed her eyes at Lori as she struggled with the answer, she eventually had enough and just got straight to the point.

"Dad cheated on mom, Leni." She said bluntly, curling her hand into a fist as she averted her gaze.

"But how? I didn't even knew they were playing a game for him to cheat?" Leni scratched her head in confusion. Lynn facepalmed at the girl's dullness.

"No, Leni, it means that he has another girl besides mom." Luna stated, also annoyed.

"So? Men are, like, allowed to have girl friends."

"You just-" Luna was about to yell, but she caught glimpse of Lori shaking her head at her. She sighed and crossed her arms while she narrowed her eyes to somewhere else. Lori took a deep breath, trying to bottle up the tears and calm herself so she could explain clearly.

"Leni, let me explain it to you." Lori sighed. It would hurt some people on the table, but it had to be clear to everyone.

"Like, okay."

 _Leni was a bit numb headed at times, this was one of those moments, and Lori took over before a fight broke out since Lynn looked close to attacking Leni._

 _I remember how her smile began to fade, I knew she had finally begun to understand, more explaining later, and she was beginning to cry. Then one by one, the house was filled with the quiet sobbing of 11 children and a mother, I was trying so hard to hold them back, but I became overwhelmed and the dam broke._

 _Most people would say that men who cry are weak while others will say otherwise,but what would have I done back then? Laugh? Mock them for crying? Say they were being wimps and had to grow up? Just look at them with a motionless expression? No, the first three options were unbearable, and the last one was Lucy and Lisa's job, and even then they were failing. I had no use but to cry._

 _We remained on that state of silence constantly being broken by sobbing, crying, screaming, suffering, You name it. It took a long while for someone to actually realize something else, like the fact that it was Tuesday, and that it was already eight in the morning._

"Oh, dang...We're gonna be late for school." Luan pointed out. Maybe she was just trying to get away from the subject, because it was obvious on her eyes, the eyes of most of them to be honest. But they all stood up and began heading towards the stairs.

"Wait." They all heard their mother speak. The kids turned back to look at their mother, as she lifted her head up to look at them, tears streaming down her face, but she wiped them away. She gave her kids a smile.

"You don't need to get ready, you're not going to school today." She said.

"Why not?" Lincoln asked as Rita got up from her chair and walked towards them.

"Look, I-I know you didn't manage to sleep well last night, and I know you must be physically and mentally exhausted, considering what happened." She gave them a small smile. Hey, it was the best she could pull off. "I'm pretty sure school is the last thing you want to worry about, so a free day might be for the best."

"Are you sure mom?" Lori said, concerned, even if a slight excitement was noticeable in her voice. Most of the Louds getting closer to her mother.

"You're all great kids, and It's not your fault you didn't get proper rest. You all deserve some time to relax." she said. "I'll call your schools, say you got sick. It'll be our little secret."

"You're the best, mom," Lana said, and all of the Louds went for a huge group hug. It helped ease and forget of the situation, even if only for an instant.

"Just give me a few minutes, so I can do the calls," she asked, as she went back to her bedroom.

* * *

 _A few minutes later_

Rita got out of her bedroom, having finished talking to the school principals of each of her children's respective school, she even took the time to make herself look more presentable since she needed to head to work soon. However, her kids all stood outside her room with small smiles on their faces.

"I called your schools, they said it was fine, but you guys will have to complete what they taught in class." She informed them. "Well, guess I'll get ready for work, Lori, like always, you're in cha-"

"Don't worry, mom, you don't have to go." Lori said, and Rita faced them with an confused expression. "As a thank you, we called your boss and told him you couldn't into work today for...personal reasons." Lori said, saying the last two words quietly. They noticed Rita frown for a bit, but her smile was quickly regained.

"It's okay, I know talking to a boss is harder than talking to a school principal. But don't do that without my permission again." The mother stated.

"Yes, ma'am." The children responded simultaneously.

 _The day went on as it should, although, the house was quieter which was rare. Most of us spent time inside the house, either watching TV or taking a nap in our rooms, we didn't have any motivation to do our usual routines, and actually, we had no reason to complain, we were enjoying each other's company, most of us were together with mom, and we felt some sort of joy. It wasn't the happiest of days, but everything was going quite well._

 _Until close to 9 PM. We got a call from you know who, and my mom was the one to answer. Yep, things were turning into shit really quick_


	3. Why you care for me?

_**A/N (Takaluca):**_ **Hey guys. Yeah, chapter three is done. Now, what to say? Well, this time there is a little bit of exposition, regarding what happened to Lincoln after all of those years. And also, our listener is finally revealed. Also, warning, this chapter contains a lot of assholeness. Guess that's it. Cry, have anything to add?**

 _ **(Cryandia): Yeah, just a small heads up for you readers, Lincoln acts a bit out of character in this chapter, but we assure it's all part of the story. And we have plenty more information on what specifically happened during their time spent with Lynn Sr., but you'll have to wait for that, including some background for other characters as well. Anyways, enjoy!**_

 _...Do you ever have one of those times that you wished you had a normal life?_

 _I've had them, many times, but I got used to and it accepted later on. My life was never something I could call normal. Hell, I had ten sisters living under the same roof, but it was fine. Even if we were mean sometimes, we always loved each other and all that other stuff. This time, though, I was practically regretting my life._

 _When my mom had answered the phone and realized who it was, she ordered us to go to our rooms, we did, but we soon decided to stay in Lori and Leni's room, you know, for comfort. We couldn't really hear much but then it turned into full on screaming. We could hear everything, every single word, and every single curse, I didn't even know what some meant at the time. I've never heard my mom sound so angry. I can't say how my father was though. But I imagine he was just as pissed._

 _There was a point where we just wanted to leave, even thinking of sneaking out through the window a few times. Who knows where, we just wanted to get away of that mixture of bad feelings. I say 'we', even if I'm the only one I'm sure that had this feeling, but hey, I can bet some felt the same way. We couldn't do anything. My body was trembling while I was trying so hard not to let the dam break. Once I heard my sisters cry though, it all went down. I was sobbing, I swear I couldn't even breathe. You wouldn't know how it feels, only child's don't have to care for anyone but themselves and their parents. Unless, they themselves go through what we went._

"...I kinda do know how it feels, Mister Loud."

"I told you, it's just Lincoln. I'm not that older than you."

"Sorry, it's part of how I was raised…"

"Zip it, kid. You come from a good family, have a lot of money, your parents are together, you have a pretty girlfriend, what else could you ask for? Stupid spoiled people, always formality and expensive shit. Disgusting. Types like you should be grabbed and throw in a dark room, alone, so you would begin learning a small percentage of the pain ME AND MY FAMILY HAD TO GO THROU-"

"I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean it like that, I'll be quiet!"

" _*Sigh*_ No, don't be. It's not your fault. It's just that people keep saying 'Oh, you haven't gone over it already' or "You're stuck in the past, move on". Yeah, it's easy when your past doesn't keep biting your ass every single day."

"Mis- I mean Lincoln, can I...ask you something?"

"You've already asked for the reason my family got separated."

"R-right...Um, how and why exactly did you leave Royal Woods?"

"Oh, yes, how I left Royal Woods. It was by plane."

"...Are you serious?"

"Of course I'm not. I left because my dad managed to convince me to come with him to 'hang out with your old man one last time' in Cali."

"He only convinced you?"

"Well, I guess I should go back to where I stopped, maybe you'll understand more."

* * *

It didn't take long for Lynn Sr. to appear back at the house, only two weeks. Apparently, or he didn't consider Rita's threats, or he just wanted to grab his things. However, some of the Louds, Leni, Luan, Lincoln and the twins more specifically, actually were missing him. They couldn't fit in their heads that he would actually betray their family.

If you wanted to see a disaster, no need to wait, the moment Rita opened the door, seeing her soon-to-be ex husband, all hell broke loose. First a hard slap that definitely would leave a mark, then some more curses and then the fact that the kids were eavesdropping on them. Sr. only sighed and calmly talk to Rita, saying that he was only there to pick up his things, despite clearly being furious at the man, and Rita reluctantly let him in. The faster his things were gone, the better she would begin to feel.

Obviously, Lynn Sr. would be able to see the kids at the staircase in the way to his bedroom. Some were quick enough to leave, but those mentioned earlier, however, weren't so lucky, or didn't even wanted to. Anyways, they were there and, as expected, he spotted them. He seemed surprised, maybe he wasn't waiting to see any of his kids anymore, his mother would ask them to stay away.

"L-Lincoln, g-girls/" He gagged in confusion

 _You know what sucks with emotions? They come in the most unexpected and unwanted moments ever. For instance, at the moment we saw our dad, we ended up in another outburst, but this time our father was the one who had calmed us down. The difference was, unlike mom, dad remained calm, he managed to help us, before we had to control our emotions ourselves._

 _It was...confusing._

 _On one hand, I wanted to get away. Our mom kept saying some negative things about him and it stirred some emotions that made us feel sad, and angry for some._

 _On the other, though...he's my dad. I couldn't just walk away and turn my back on him like my sisters did. Well, some of them._

 _That's why we didn't want to let go of him when we hugged him._

Rita went upstairs. The group of six didn't know why, though. Hearing another six people cry might be enough evidence to the answer. And that's when they knew they had some sort of privacy. No way they would hear them over the sobbing produced upstairs.

"Dad, what's happening?" Lana asked.

"It's all a misunderstanding, my dear." he said. "Your mom doesn't want to listen to me, though. She wants we to go away, all because of a joke between my coworkers." he explained.

 _And we believed him. We f*cking believed him for months, we would continue believing him. It was then that he told us the truth. But there was no way for us to find out at the moment. Ignorance prevailed. We all thought that the American old fashioned family of both parents together with their kids is the best._

 _We didn't realize it could work better with one of the parents out of the equation. And that was our demise, trying to somehow keep them together. Divorce relationships sometimes works. This was not one of those._

The conversation downstairs didn't last long. A few more questions regarding Lynn Sr, as where he would go, and if they will see him again. He assured them he had a place and that, whenever they wanted, they could see him. They just had to call him, so they could set things up. Then, he left. Well, Rita kicked him outside to be honest, she then made the five kids follow her upstairs. Needless to say neither of them had a good feeling about it and also heartbreaking.

 _And that's when the bullshit begins. It was obvious my father and my mother were basically in a war. My mother had allies, our father had patience and intelligence. She came to us, with all of the 'don't trust your father, he lied to all of us' schtick, but we were kids, and who would you believe in this situation? In our minds, we knew someone was wrong, but we wanted the two together, but we all knew it was almost impossible at this point. Actually, no, that took a few days. Stupid propaganda, makes us believe the everyone together is always the best. One thing I can tell you is that most of my sisters_ _ **hated**_ _dad by this point. Some of us went along his story. If we sided with mom, things would have been different. Better? I don't know, but definitely different._

"So, is that what made you stay with him all these years?"

"A simple talk isn't enough to make you live in another state. Look at us, we were in a middle of a fight between both our parents. In a kid's mind, the one who made us feel better would obviously win. And of course, my father had everything at his advantage."

"Let me guess, it's because he was the one who spoiled you all?"

"Partially, yes. There's one thing that kids want to be: happy."

"Happy?"

"Yes, wasn't that what you wanted? Didn't your father ever told you 'have money, it will make you happy'?

"...Plenty of times."

"You see, everyone has an objective in mind, but in the end we want to be happy. What we have to do to reach it, I have no fucking clue, but back in the day, our father had two things in his advantage, to give us the illusion of happiness. You got one, the fact he spoiled us, a lot. Mostly my sisters. Especially Lola. You know how she is."

"What was the other?"

"Unlike my mother, he didn't annoyed us with crying every single day."

"W-wait, why are you suddenly hostile towards her, she's your mother, Lincoln."

"You wanna know why? Well, here's the reason, more than half my family hates me, and my mom is the fucking reason for it!"

"What bad thing did she do?"

"Let me tell you something, dear. Our mother can be the best in the world, but that doesn't change the fact she was responsible for us. After her breakdowns, what you think that happened? Everyone got depressed. Sure, I wasn't there, but I heard the stories of what happened to my siblings after she let her emotions get the best of her. Things weren't pretty."

"What did she do to them?"

"Directly? Nothing. Indirectly? Oh ho ho, where to begin? Bad grades, because nobody wanted to study. Lack of friends, because everyone wanted to help her feel good, not mentioning that some of us grew aggressive to them and it often lead to fights. Oh, I won't even tell the drug and alcohol cases."

"Drugs and alco-"

"Anyways, the ones that went with dad didn't realize it, but making our mom crying because we still enjoyed his company was a way for her to grow up. My mom doesn't need to forget what dad did. Nobody does. But let your heart guide you and you'll won't make five feet!"

"She's still your mother, Lincoln."

"Yeah, so? She was the main reason some of us are fucked up, and they think I'm the one to blame. You know, my family always liked to blame me for stuff. I didn't force anyone to do anything, I gave advice for those who wanted, they left me behind, and complain that me going missing is my damn fault? Give me a goddamn break!*sigh*...Have any whiskey?"

"Excuse me, this is not the time to drink more! Lincoln, she is your mother, the one who gave you your life, it's not her fault she couldn't comfort you because she was trying to keep herself steady after what your father did to her!"

"Well, it was not my fault I was an 11 year old kid, my father did a better job comforting me, and because of a choice that was PURELY MINE, _I_ SUDDENLY BECAME THE ASSHOLE OF THE FAMILY!"

"Lincoln, I don't know what you're going through, yet you shouldn't be blaming your poor mother when she was already going through enough suffering."

"Suffering? Ha!"

"What's so funny?"

"You have no idea what suffering is. Because believe me, there was a moment I thought maybe my family besides my father was a better option. My siblings knew that, and even then, they left me to rot and be eaten by the ravens. My father managed to help me, something my mother wasn't able to, even when all of that started."

"Lincoln, please! Break out of your father's manipulation and hear the tru-"

"Listen Addington, I'm tired of being yelled I was manipulated. It might be truth, I was a kid, but hey, it happens to anyone! For instance, your family manipulates you, makes you think they have good intentions."

"They do have good intentions, if they didn't, why would my uncle take in your sisters and your mother-"

"Don't you dare speak of that asshole. You wanna convince me I was manipulated? Go ahead, I'll do the same, but let me finish the goddamn story. AND WHERE'S THE FUCKING WHISKEY?!"

"Actually, I think I've heard enough."

"Huh, spoiled people are always the same, can't hear the truth without hiding behind their fancy houses and fancy cars. Besides, you really think I didn't know I was manipulated?"

"Then why are you still with him?!"

"Because it's too late to make any differences. My family hates me, I already agreed to pay off my dad's debt, and I might get kicked out of my friend's house because his dads don't like my attitude. Yep, my life's completely fucked. Did my father manipulated me to go with him? Yes, but he's the only one that actually gives two shits about me. Want proof? Call literally anyone in my family and ask what they think of me. The answer will be the same for everyone!"

"That's bullshi- I mean, that's nonsense!"

" _Aww, is the little rich boy too good to say such a dirty word~?"_

"Shut up. I highly doubt they would hate you, I mean, you're their only brother and son, Lincoln. It's BS."

"Huh, I wish it was all bullshit. Believe me man, I'd love to see my family actually caring for me, but that won't happen. You know, now something has reached my mind."

"What?"

"Why the fuck did you want to hear my story?"

"Want me to be honest?"

" _Nooo, lie to me, like the one who manipulated me_. Let's be honest here, you have no reason to care if I'm offended or not. If I get pissed, one of your security guards will already be aiming at my head."

 _Okay, I have to admit, he's right on that one._ "Fine, the reason I wanted to hear it's because I wanted to know what happened to you."

"Don't you have, I don't know, Luan, Leni, Lana and your best friend, Lola to tell you?"

"I did, but I wanted to hear it from you."

"Because…?"

"...Because I saw and heard you yell at them."

"Ohhh, now I get it!"

"What do you get?"

"You just wanted to hear the real thing because they were talking shit about me, weren't they? You know, like how I 'abandoned' them, how I made their lives worse and how I'm being manipulated by our dad."

"...Uhh…"

"Guess I'm on point."

"N-no, wait!"

"Give me a glass of whiskey, then I'll wait as long as you want."

"I-I don't think that'll help, you already had two glasses…"

"Then how about you just go? You got what you wanted."

"Lincoln, please! I just want to help you."

"Why? As far as I know, I don't have a ton of cash to be worth the effort."

"No, that's not why-"

"I'm going back to the bar."

"Fine, I'll pay you the freaking whiskey. Just let me speak first."

"Well, now you're speaking my language. Continue on, _sir."_

"Don't call me that."

"Make your point quick, I don't like to wait around in back alleys before I drink."

"First off, you're nineteen and not of legal drinking age. Second-"

"Don't tell me what I can or cannot do. Make your point, or I'm outta here."

 _If you'd let me talk. "_ *sigh* What I want to say is, if you're really in a messy place right now, in the middle of a tough situation, I just want to say something my mother said to me: ' _If you keep yourself in the dark, you'll never be able to see the light._ '"

"I thought you'd say why you wanted to help me."

"Take what I said and try to figure it out for yourself. It's better for someone to realize one's own flaws than be told by others."

"Are you deaf? I got it, you're trying to give me moral lessons to become a better person, but why? Why care for someone as me? I know I'm a worthless asshole, there's no clear reason for you to help me. I've got nothing to offer you."

"Because I know the real you is still in there, you just need the light to break the chains that are holding you down."

"Oh, I understand what you mean. So…"

"Yeah?"

"Where is my glass of whiskey?"

 _Oh, for God's sake._

Lincoln watched the boy pull out his wallet, and of course, it was filled to the brim with money. He pulled out a hundred dollar bill and Lincoln swiftly took it out of his hands, a small grin forming on his face.

"Thanks, Addington."

"Please just call me Winston." The boy said as he put his wallet back into his pocket.

"Whatever. Winston it is then." Lincoln shrugged. He turned on his heel and walked back towards the back door of the bar. "Oh, one last thing."He looked back at the rich boy.

"What now?" Winston groaned. He was already getting tired of having to deal with Lincoln's stubbornness. Plus, the alley they were having the conversation in was starting to make him feel uneasy.

"You know, some in your family might be assholes, but you're the first guy that actually gave some sort of value for my existence, without any interest for money. It feels good inside."

Winston was a bit surprised to say the least as he was expecting some sort of insult. Though, the statement did make him smile. "Well, I'm glad I did make you feel at least a bit better."

"If you wanna hear the rest, you know where to find me. And this time, I'll let you choose the place." Lincoln said, opening the back door. "Nice talking to you." He walked in and closed the door behind him.

 _Nice talking to you too._ Winston walked out of the alleyway, and looked at the building on his left, seeing the bar where the man he just talked to entered. He would definitely go after him, if it weren't for the fact he would get kicked out. Yet, he maybe still had a chance.

However, the afternoon sun was starting to position itself to set and since he already missed Brunch by talking to Lincoln, he would be darned if he was late for dinner. Not to mention he was getting a bit hungry. He could see Lincoln was apparently changing a bit, even if his addiction to alcohol wouldn't help. But Winston assured himself, if there is even the slightest possibility for the old Lincoln he so much heard about from the other Louds to come back…

…He would do anything to assure that.


	4. Stumbling home

**A/N (Takaluca): hey guys. Well, here we are again, chapter four. Yes, it's much longer, but it was necessary. Here, we'll have a little more about Winston and Lincoln's realities outside their meeting. And… guess that's it. Cry, anything else?**

 **(Cryandia): Actually, yeah. Uh, the part where you have a bit on the Louds backstory… it's inspired in my life experience. It's not 100, but it has its part of truth.**

 **(Both): Well, as always, hope you enjoy the chapter. Let us know what you're thinking on the reviews, and let's go.**

As much as Winston didn't considered himself a spoiled kid, he had to admit, he couldn't imagine surviving without certain things. One of those things was always having a ride with air conditioner ready to take him wherever he needed. A call was all he needed to do, and he was on his way home. Royal Woods has grown so much on the last years, it was almost impossible to not get lost on the newer sections of the town.

He had to say, he knew his family was capable of a lot, but he never imagined them doing so much for the place in so little time. His uncle said he would put Royal Woods on the map, and he was doing an amazing job so far. Lots of new businesses, more people were coming to live here. He was rebuilding a whole new city from the remains of the town.

It didn't took long before he arrived at his house. The front gates opened by themselves as the limo went past the lush, green garden, filled with numerous types of different plants and trees giving it a beautiful look, a big, four floored mansion stood at the end of the path with golden colored walls which contrasted with the white marbles. Though, Winston couldn't say he was fan of the gold and white color scheme of his home, but it was what it was.

As per usual, the numerous butlers and maids waited for him at the front of the front entrance. Winston stepped out, the butlers and maids bowing, while saying 'Welcome home, sir' as he past by. He would hear people, mostly his parents and other rich families, refer to them as servants, but Winston didn't like calling them that, he rather asks for their names and calls for them politely. As the door was opened by one of the many workers in the mansion, and he walked inside into the place he called 'home' as the butlers closed the doors behind him.

However, once he was in, he heard footsteps walking against the marble floor. Winston looked up see his personal butler, Benjamin, walk up to him.

Okay, maybe he was a _little_ spoiled.

"Mister Addington." The man politely greeted, his British accent shining through as he bowed. Benjamin stood up straight in a perfect posture. "One of your friends, Lola Loud, has arrived, she's waiting for you in the living room."

"Thank you, Benjamin." Winston thanked.

"Your welcome, sire. Please, follow me." Benjamin said as he began leading Winston to their living room.

It was like his family always said, be polite, there's nothing worse than behaving like an animal. Bad education is the reason of all problems in the world. Those who treat others well have no reason to have conflict. Looking back to his chat with Lincoln, it was one more evidence it was truth. When he was impolite, it lead to fight. When he got sort of polite, things went much better.

He entered the living room and saw a girl, around his age. She was wearing a pink dress, and a white fur coat, made to look like the skin of a polar bear. A smile came to Winston's face, as the girl stood up and approached him, but then turned into a teasing smirk.

"Princess Lola of Royal Woods." He bowed like was greeting royalty, a bit of mockery in his tone. Lola rolled her eyes, but she couldn't help giggling at the boy's antict.

"Sir Winston of Royal Woods." She said and bowed, lifting the hems of her dress slightly, in the same tone as him. Both stood up straight and laughed at their little inside joke.

What could they say? They liked playing knights and princesses as kids, Even though Winston would get dragged away by guards most of the time.

"What brings you to my house today?" Winston asked.

"I wanted to invite you to come to my humble mansion, your parents are already there and I volunteered to come get you. Don't worry, I haven't been waiting long." Lola informed.

"Then what are we waiting for? I'll ask for a ride." He announced.

"That sounds delightful."

They both made their way outside the manor towards the car, Lola gave the driver the address, like he didn't have it written down, due to being there other times already and the chauffeur began driving to their destination. It didn't take long until they reached the place. The house architecture and color pallet was much similar to Winston's house. He remembered that his friend had a much smaller house compared to where she was living now. That old place looked like was slowly collapsing on itself while they did their best to try to repair it. He had gone there once or twice, but his family didn't like it, saying it was too inferior for someone of such high class like him. There was a time where she had gone away and that was around the time Lola's mom, Rita, met his uncle, Alistair, and they began going out.

Due to their relationship, Alistair decided to take in Rita and her daughters into his mansion. He was a bit surprised that his friend's family had suddenly appeared in the rich parts of Royal Woods and his father even scolded his uncle for taking in some low class 'peasants'. It took some time, though, things have changed, and now the Addingtons and the Louds have a very close relationship.

The door was opened for one of their maids, who greeted both of them. He noticed that some of Lola's sisters were on the huge TV room. Lucy, Lisa and Lily, he believed so. He tried, but sometimes he forgot their names. But he almost sure he was right. The color of their clothes made it easier to identify them.

"Winston, my man!" He heard someone greet him. He looked aside and saw that Lola's twin, Lana, was walking towards them. She was almost totally covered in mud, like she spent the whole day digging in the huge backyard they had. And knowing the girl, that was probably what happened.

"Hello, Lan-" Before he could was cut off by the maid.

"Excuse me, Miss Loud." the maid that opened the door said, stepping between Winston and Lola, making Lana stop. "Your bath is ready, we need you to look your best."

"What! Come on, it took me a lot to get all of this!" She signed her body full of different types of dirt, but that didn't stop the maid to take her through the round staircase leading towards the upper level. Lana tried to escape, but she couldn't manage to. She just accepted her destiny, half her way towards the bathroom. Winston was a bit confused while Lola rolled her eyes, this time in annoyance.

"Sorry for the inconvenience." She apologized half-heartedly.

"Don't worry." Winston assured. He really wondered what did she mean with inconvenience, though. Sure, Lana wasn't a formal princess, but she only greeted them. What matters that she was dirty? It didn't bother her at all, why she has to take a bath? But he wouldn't argue. It wasn't his duty to determine how the Louds should do, say or act. That was up to their mother and Alistair, sometimes even Lori.

Lola guided Winston towards the backyard. It was a beautiful garden with one of the many lakes that were in Michigan, although this one was much smaller compared to others, but still made a beautiful sight to look at. The birds chirping from the tree branches as the sun shined on the green grass and near the end of the garden. In the lake, there was a small dock with a hut, the dock often was used for the owners to dive into the small lake's clear, blue waters. There in the hut, four people were seated down around a table. Two men and two women.

They were displayed as two couples. Two of them had very familiar faces. After all, Winston lived with them. The other two, he didn't met as often, but they were still very close to him.

"Mother, father, uncle, Misses Loud." He greeted the four people, as they turned their face to see Winston and Lola approaching them. His parents didn't say anything and looked rather serious, but his uncle and Rita smiled, Rita giving them a small wave as well.

"Hello, son." his father said, his tone stern. "Where have you been? It has been some time since you have left our home."

"Oh, I, uh…" Winston quickly thought of an excuse. "I was hanging with a group of friends. Yes. We want to that Japanese restaurant at the center." he knew that due to the nature of the people he was talking to, tell that he was in a dark alley, with a poor drunk with violent tendencies wasn't exactly going to please them. "We were talking for hours, and you know they have the best sushi." He added with a sheepish smile.

"That's very good, dearest." His mother stated, without changing the expression on her face.

Winston was glad nobody called him out. He wasn't a good liar. He was taught to always tell the truth, so it made lying a bit difficult. Lola could make up a lie in a split second, while it took him the whole car ride to think of one. So, let's say he picked up a few tricks and that if it wasn't for her, he would remain stuck in place for at least ten minutes before he said something convincing.

"So, that's why you couldn't make it to brunch?" His narrowed his eyes at him, which in turn made his gulp the sudden lump that formed in his throat.

 _Please don't catch up, please don't catch up._

"Y-yes, exactly. I'm sorry I didn't let you know in advance, I didn't think it would take longer than it had." Winston stammered.

"Well, son, next time, pay more attention." His father scowled at him. He was just glad nobody noticed he was lying.

"Preston, please, give your son a break. He always has someone with him, nothing bad will happen." His uncle butted in, looking and sounding rather calm about it.

"You know there are still some bad people out there, brother." Preston looked at Alistair. "Despite your best efforts to improve Royal Woods and increase security, which, may I add, are the best this place ever had, something can always happen. We can't be too sure."

"Calm your nerves, once I'm done improving this city, no one will have to worry about those darned criminals, I can promise you that."

And that's when Winston stopped paying attention. Of course, he didn't leave or say something else, that would be too impolite. But to be honest, how his uncle would improve the city wasn't that interesting. What he found interesting was that he does things, and it helps. That's what mattered.

Seems like Lola had lost interest as well, seeing as she grabbed his arm and dragged him away from the conversation between the adults as they had heard it far too many times now.

"Not wanting to sound offensive, but our families can get boring really quick," Lola said. "How about we go to the theater room and watch a movie instead?" She asked him.

"Uh… y-yeah, sure." Winston replied, still a bit nervous.

"You okay, Winston? You seem a bit nervous." Lola said, a hint of concern in her tone.

"Oh, it's nothing." he quickly said. "I was just thinking…"

Lola rose her eyebrow, a bit curious about what he was thinking. "What is it?"

"How can I explain?" He asked himself. "So, remember when you told me about your family?"

"Yeah." Lola answered uncertainty.

"I was just thinking about your father. What was his name…?" Winston pretended to forget. To get as much information possible, the best would be to seem clueless. And he couldn't remember the name anyways.

Lola knew she couldn't say anything, especially regarding the topic which was already pretty sensitive to her.. "Lynn. His name's Lynn, well, Lynn Senior to be specific." Wait. Why did she tell him?

"Oh, yeah, right," Winston said. "Uh, what happened to him?" He asked. The fact is, Lola only told him that Rita and Lynn weren't together, but his father explained a little more of the story. He knew what happened, by the adults point of view. Lola, however, didn't know he knows. Plus, he is getting more information from Lincoln. But useful information is not something to mess up with

"I-I'd rather not talk about it." Lola responded, keeping her gaze to the floor while tightening her grip on the boy's arm without noticing.

"Is everything okay?" Winston asked, like he didn't know what was going on. "Sorry I brought the subject up. "He quickly apologized.

"Yeah, it's just...I'd rather not talk about him." Lola stated. Tightening her grip and increasing her pace. "It brings back memories."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said it," Winston apologized again, now feeling worse. "I just wondered whenever you still miss him or-." he continued, before being interrupted.

"It's none of your business." Lola snapped.

"You're right, sorry, I shouldn't have said that." Winston once again apologized. "Let's just go inside." He said, taking the lead this time and lead Lola towards the theater room. Passing through several maids and butlers, and a few other sisters who he waved to, they finally they made it to the theatre room, four rows of seats with a projector hanging from the ceiling onto a big screen. They took a seat at the middle row, Lola grabbed the remote and turned on the projector which projected the menu, and the movie selections.

"So, uh, how the rest of your siblings doing?" Winston asked, twiddling his thumbs on his lap.

"They're doing fine." Lola responded bluntly. "So, which movie do you wanna watch?"

"Have you ever heard about The Cathy Mahone Story?" Winston asked. Maybe a good similar story would be enough to get a few answers. Even if it was not his favorite movie. He would have to thank his father for telling the main story of the Louds, and his mother for making him watch so many movies.

"Y-yeah, I have, but are you sure you want to watch that one?" Lola said uncertainty. She knew what the movie was about, but never really managed to watch it without falling asleep. But now it was...different.

"Yes, unless… do you have any problems with it?" Winston turned to look at her. Maybe she would save him time by talking right now, rather then after almost 2 hours.

Lola forced a smile. "No, no, it's no big deal, let's watch it." She didn't really know if they had it- Oh, wait, they did. Dang it. Being able to buy every movie available had its disadvantages.

She pressed the play button, and the movie began to play.

 _1 hour and 33 minutes later_

Despite the touchy subject the movie had to Lola, they couldn't help but point out some flaws during it, resulting in laughter. Lola had called for snacks because what's a movie without popcorn? However, it did result in them touching hands a few times which was embarrassing.

"Well, that was the movie, though not very good if you ask me." Lola stated, taking one last bite of her chocolate bar and then throwing the paper on the ground. What? The maids will clean it.

"Yeah, I noticed." Winston said, remembering Lola's voice during the whole movie, as he had the last sip of his water. "Thought you would relate with it, though." he said, almost like an accident. It was actually an accident. Winston planned on being slower with trying to gather information.

And that statement almost made Lola choke on the bite of chocolate. She swallowed and turned to him. "What do you mean I would 'relate to it'?" She narrowed her eyes at him, her voice tone sounding offended. Winston realized his mistake.

Great, he screw up his words and now he's one step closer to angering Lola. And you do not want to make Lola angry.

"Well…" Winston trying to find a way to begin. Might as well just go straight to the point. "Is just that, you know, your parents divorce, and your father took your brother -" he was brutally interrupted.

"Winston." Lola said sternly with a harsh glare making the rich boy flinch. "How do you know that?

"M-my father spoke to my uncle, he said your mother told him a bit of the story, a-and he told me a bit. All he said is that you were with your father for a while." Winston said. That was true. He didn't know much, all he knew was what he said, plus that, apparently, it was all Lincoln's fault, according to her mother, as he allowed himself to be manipulated by his father. That was one of the reason he asked Lincoln for his story.

"Is that the reason you chose this movie?" Lola asked, still annoyed.

"What? No, of course not. I mean, it was sort of… Yeah, that's why I choose the movie." He confessed with a sigh. "Look, Lola, I'm worried something might be going on with you, and I think it has something to do with your brother," he explained. Knowing Lola, making her the center of attention usually made things easier.

Lola softened he gaze, but she suddenly felt this weird feeling in her stomach. She crossed her arms over her chest, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion. "What do you mean? I'm perfectly fine..."

"Lola, you might not like it, but I saw how you acted out there when I mentioned Lincoln, and that was not the first time. You've been acting like that a lot in the past few days. I've noticed it. We spent a lot of time together, and I think there wasn't one of our meetings that you didn't suddenly got sad out of nowhere at the mention of family or other related subjects." Winston exposed her.

He remembered the days before their meeting today. Something definitely happened, and now he understood the source. Not what happened, but what it was about. Lola was after him a lot. Maybe she actually needed a friend to listen to her. Or maybe he was writing his death sentence. Or both. He really hoped it was the former option.

She turned away, her gaze staring down at the ground. Winston didn't know whether to push the subject or to just drop it and apologize. After a few seconds of silence, realizing that Lola understands what he means, but not wanting to admit it, was a good indication he would have more than a few seconds of life. He placed one of his hand on her shoulder, getting her to turn her head around to look at him. Her eyes were glassy, meaning that she was close to crying. Honestly, it did hurt him a bit to see his best friend like this.

"I know some things hurt to remember, but keeping it to yourself will do nothing but harm you, I'm worried about you, Lola. You're the best friend I've ever had, and it hurts to see you in this state. I just want to help, and see your pretty smile again." he finished, not taking his eyes off of hers.

Lola felt her heart skip a beat as her cheeks heated up a bit, making them a light red color. Looking into Winston's eyes made her feel safe and made the weight on her shoulders lighten up. She knew her family would be mad at her, heck, she should be angry at him for even asking such a personal question, but she's known Winston since they were 6 years old, he was basically her best friend besides Lana. She knew he was only trying to help, because that's how Winston is; always trying to help someone in need.

The 14 year old let out a shaky sigh, she uncrossed her arms and set her palms on her lap. She kept her gaze to the floor as she spoke. "My mom and dad got a divorce when I was six, and it took a turn for the worst when he came back for his stuff. We were on his side. For a couple months, he was still living in Royal Woods. We used to hang out with him. After that, he announced he was moving away, but asked us if we wanted to go to him to California to hang out with him one last time."

"And I guess it wasn't a pleasant experience." Winston assumed. He knew a bit of what happened, but it never hurts to be sure.

"No shit, Sherlock." Lola sneered. "Of course I didn't have a pleasant experience. Why? Because my dad managed to convince me and my siblings to...stay with him." Lola took a deep breath. "Sorry about that, I didn't mean to snap at you." She quickly apologized to him from her previous comment.

"Don't worry, it's okay." Winston assured. He knew they were away from some time. Lola, Lincoln, and a few others. His father told him after a talk between him and her mother. It was to make sure he wouldn't be rude to bring the subject up. But he had to know more on what happened. If that family fell apart because of one guy, it could fall again. And Winston didn't want that to happen.

Lola took a deep breath and exhaled, then continued on. "He took us to his girlfriend's house, she was nice at first but when dad was away, she was a whole different person." Lola clenched her hands into fist as she lowered her face. "She was abusive."

"Really?" Winston's eyes widened, like Lola would have a reason to lie about a woman he didn't know, and had nothing to do with his life. He could have asked more, but he would be asking too much if his friend. For a fourteen year old girl, some things are quite hard to tell. Lincoln never told him about this abusive human. Yet, he never told how was life with his father to begin with.

Lola held up her hand, extending her pointer finger. "She would beat us." She held up another. "Yell at us." She held up a third one. "And she would lock us down on the basement if we disobeyed her." Lola's voiced cracked as tears began falling from her eyes.

Winston wasn't stupid, and pulled the girl right into his arms. The story almost made him begin crying as well. He was rather shocked, to say the least. He didn't allow himself to back up, or cry. He had to be there for her, in that moment. After all, he brought all of this up.

"I-I'm sorry, Lola," he managed to say. "I-I'm just glad that now you're safe." That was true. He remembered not seeing Lola for a long time, almost a year. Before his father told him, he always wondered where the girl was. It wasn't pleasant to find out, though. The fact is, his father only told that they were with their father, and that 'things were bad', but only now he was getting details.

"I was scared…" Lola weeped, hugging the boy closer.

"Don't worry, I'll protect you." Winston said softly while stroking the girl's hair. "After you all it back, no one will let it happen again. I won't lose my friend again." He was serious, his family had the conditions to have the best of security on their hands, and his uncle is making sure that goes over the whole city. He will make sure Lola and her family are safe.

Lola felt her face heat up as her heart began to race and her tears suddenly stopped. She felt a flutter in her stomach, she knew what it was, as she has had felt like this numerous times. She knew they were just friends, and they always have been since they were six. Though, that really didn't keep her from falling for him.

She wrapped her arms around him, snuggling into the crook of his neck while Winston rested his chin on the top of her head. The girl felt a smile form on her face.

"Thank you, Winston..." She said softly.

Winston was happy to see he managed to get the girl to calm down, and feel like she had so much weight taken over her back.

"...you're welcome…" Winston replied.

* * *

 _Hours Later._

 _Time: 2 AM_

"Stupid motherfucking bartender... I had the goddamn money, and he doesn't sell it…! Who cares if I had more than five bottles, and I'm not twenty-one?! At least the Macbrides have their stock of wine..." Lincoln slurred, as he clumsily walked back to where he was staying. His best friend's house. He was right in front of it and knocked on the door. When he didn't get a response, he began ringing the doorbell while knocking on the door several times

Once he heard shuffling coming from the other side he stopped. A goofy smirk appeared on his face. "I'm such a genish…!"

Howard McBride opened the door, the man was in his pajamas with a sleeping mask resting on top of his head, from his tired expression alone was enough to see that the man wasn't fond of being awoken so early.

"Hey, wassup old man?!" Lincoln said loudly as he walked in, and he tripped, almost falling on the floor. "Tell me, ya still have some of that good 'ol booze? Would make this guy very happy! " he said, giggling, struggling to remain still.

"Lincoln, it's two in the morning, where have you been young man, and why do you reek of alcohol?" Howard asked tiredly but there was a tone of annoyance in his voice.

"Ah, come on Howdy!" Lincoln wrapped an arm around the man, much to his discomfort. "You can't expect a boy to not have some fun. Never did it? Drink with friends, have fun for once, watch the la- oh right, I forgot that part. Correction, watch the gentleman around. It's called life, maybe you heard of it. Try it one day, I'm sure you won't regret it," he said

"Lincoln, please...your breath." Howard turned away gagging. He pushed the young man off of him, and looked at him with a scowl. "Listen, I know you had a traumatic experience and you're trying to forget it, but please have some decency!"

"Howie?" Harold, Howard's husband, came from the hallway. Once he set eyes on the drunken Lincoln, he became both confused and worried. "Howard, what's going on?" Harold walked over to his husband.

"Oh, Harry, nice to see ya! Hehe.." Lincoln wave his hand. "We were just having a nice chat, and Howdy here was about to give me the good stuff, am I right?" He faced Howard.

"No. Lincoln, please stop." Howards glared, Lincoln was obviously getting on his nerves. Especially since this isn't the first time he's arrived in this state.

"Stop what…?" Lincoln asked drunkenly, rubbing his head. "Ohhhh... Don't worry, I've got money to pay for the drinks!" he assured them.

"You little-"

"Howie, calm down, he's drunk, he doesn't know what he's saying." Harold placed his hand on Howard's shoulder in concern.

"So, where's the good stuff?" Lincoln insisted.

"Dad? Dad? What's going on…?" The three men turned to see Clyde, who was yawning. "Isn't it too early to start arguing?" The young man rubbed his eye.

"Heeey buddy!" Lincoln greeted, walking towards his friend. "You're right, it's too early to argue, so why don't you just show me where you guys keep the…" Lincoln tripped and fell on the floor, his head facing downwards. "You know, I never noticed how soft the carpet was..." he commented as he was slowly getting up. He puked on the carpet. "God damn, that was some good shit."he giggled a bit more.

"Clyde, take Lincoln to his room before your father loses his temper." Harold said quickly as Howards tried to attack Lincoln but he was holding him back.

Clyde could only sigh at the sight. "Sure thing, dad." He went over to his drunk friend, careful not to step on his vomit, and placed Lincoln's arm over his shoulder. "Come on, buddy, let's get you to bed."

"Sure thing, I'm tired as hell," Lincoln said, as they both headed towards Clyde's bedroom. "Ya know, your father's got quite a temper."

"Well, it's because of you, Lincoln." Clyde admitted.

"Me, what did I do?" Lincoln slurred, completely clueless.

"Dude, you've been coming home drunk almost every day." Clyde opened the door and led Lincoln inside. with one bed, and a mattress on the floor, sitting him on the bed.

"Huh, he needs to learn how to enjoy life..." Lincoln complained. "So, how was your day?" He asked.

"Just the usual; College, video games and projects." Clyde replied bluntly. "What about you?"

"Same as always. No wait, actually," Lincoln was remembering. "You remember Winston? That boy one of my sisters had a crush on, and also happens to be the nephew of that asshole that runs the city?"

Clyde rose his eyebrow quizzingly. "Yeah, what about him?" He knew about the Addington family, one of the richest family in the city, though he doesn't know a lot about them since they mostly avoid drama, unlike some sub celebrities.

"Yeah, he went after me," Lincoln said. "Seems that my family still thinks about me. He wanted my story, so I gave part of it, and I've earned a few free drinks." he explained, with a smile of his face, like he was the smartest person around.

"Wait, you told him, but not me?" Clyde had to admit he was a bit hurt that his best bud told some random rich boy instead of him, though, he was drunk, so he probably didn't know any better.

"I didn't? I remember telling you back at the bar a few days ago?" Lincoln said. "Well, you wouldn't be able to take it anyway. Too much for some people," he explained. "If you really wanna, I tell you some other day. Also, you believe he thinks his family is all good shit?"

Clyde thought about it for a moment before shaking his hand. "Eh, not much, I'm glad about what they're doing for Royal Woods, but still don't believe everything they say, you know?" He said with a shrug. Actually, now that he thought about it, he didn't really know _anything_ about the Addington family. Besides the fact that they were rich, he didn't know anything else about them.

"Huh, they ran business back at my father's place," Lincoln explained. "Check the news of California, his name has some relations back there." he suggested. "Now, if you excuse me, I have to get ready for the headache tomorrow." Lincoln said, as he fell on the mattress, and instantly falling asleep.

Clyde let out a sigh as he shook his head. He grabbed the blanket that was on the floor and tucked it around Lincoln, then heading back to his room, which was across from his while closing the door behind him. The stepped into his bedroom and sat on his bed as he rubbed his temples and sighed. Clyde would have followed his lead, but he had lost his sleepiness due to Lincoln's arrival. He saw his computer on the desk. He decided it was a good idea to go after the story of the people that ran the city.


End file.
